JUNE 12, 1852

CHIPPEWA AUGUSTUS “GUS” HUDON BEAULIEU, BORN—NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER

Born in Crow Wing County, Minnesota (MN), Beaulieu’s influential family relocated to White Earth Reservation in 1869. Gus worked as clerk, shopkeeper, interpreter, real estate agent, and, for 19 years, as a deputy U.S. Marshal. In 1886, he & Cousin Theodore Beaulieu founded The Progress-a reservation newspaper. The first issue was halted when the Indian agent ordered a raid seizing the printing press and exiled Gus from the reservation, Beaulieu sued the agent for denial of his First Amendment rights. In November 1886, the U.S. Circuit Court at St. Paul ordered the return of Beaulieu’s press and awarded Gus $250. U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs further ordered the agent to allow Gus to return to White Earth and allow him to publish The Progress. The paper ended publication on July 13, 1889. In 1903, the Beaulieus re-introduced the paper as The Tomahawk. Gus left the paper in 1905, but returned in 1915, focusing on equal rights and Indian citizenship. Beaulieu died August 9, 1917, in Crow Wing.

Sources:

Adam Spry, “Our War Paint is Writer’s Ink: Ojibwe Literary Transnationalism.” Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Arts and Science, Columbia University, 2014.  Retrieved 3/5/2023, Spry_columbia_0054D_12243 (2).pdf

“Augustus Hudon ‘Gus’ Beaulieu (1852-1917),” Find a Grave Memorial   Retrieved 3/5/2023, Augustus Hudon “Gus” Beaulieu (1852-1917) - Find a Grave Memorial

Photo:  Author unknown, circa 1910. Likely Public Domain, alternatively Fair Use. Source: The VOICE of PROGRESS on JSTOR